


the many tragic deaths of hatsune miku, feat. the one guy who didn't realize within five minutes that she had an incredibly terrible crush and began teasing her for it, who also happens to be her crush

by chivalrousAmour



Category: Vocaloid
Genre: F/M, based off of bad end night, ridiculous pining
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-05
Updated: 2019-04-06
Packaged: 2019-09-06 15:38:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 8,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16835551
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chivalrousAmour/pseuds/chivalrousAmour
Summary: The most pressing issue on Hatsune Miku's mind is, surprisingly enough, not the fact that this is her first leading role, nor is it the fact that she's working with professional actors she looks up to and admires. It's not even Luka's diva attitude. It's the fact that Miku, in what can only be called an act of the highest degree of stupidity, fell for one of her co-stars. And, in a borderline self-destructive act, decided to disclose this fact to his twin sister, who absolutely isn't letting this go.The most pressing issue on Kagamine Len's mind is, predictably enough, related to the play they're performing, as one would expect from the perfect professional he is. No one seems to realize that teasing their lead actress only makes her stiffen up on top of the stage, least of all his twin sister. It's a shame his mere presence seems to terrify the poor lead role more than any amount of joking jabs could ever achieve...





	1. prologue

"Miku," Rin said in a slow, almost languishing tone. 

She was practically draped all over her chair, completely contrasting with the pigtailed girl stiffer than stone in the seat opposite her. The blonde was purposefully casual in her display, demonstrating her power over the situation with her posture alone. Or, well, maybe it would be more suitable to describe it as _'showing off'_ her control.

"Are you serious?" Rin asked pointedly, staring up at the roof more than her conversational partner, if you could call a girl who seemed too nervous to utter a single word a conversational partner.

Speaking of which, that girl seemed to be sweating.

"You can't just _say_ that and expect things to be cool," Rin went on. "Things are _so_ not cool." She mimed holding a cylindric object. "Do you see this imaginary thermostat I'm holding?" With her other hand, she pointed at the top of her imaginary thermostat. "It's pointing to _tropical._ _That's_ how not-cool the upcoming events will be if you don't share more details."

A panicked whimper left the other girl's throat.

"What was that?" Rin asked. "I didn't quite catch that."

"I'msosorryMissLordRinIambutahumblegirlfromabackwatervillagewhocowersinyourpresence—"

"Miku."

The sound of her name broke the pigtailed girl out of both her frenzied trance and her run-on sentence.

"Miku, Miku, _Miku,_ " Rin repeated, sounding utterly disappointed in the other girl. "I don't care about your apologies, or your begging. _You_ walked right in, checked if we were alone, and asked if I knew about my brother's _taste in girls._ Panic and try and cover it up and say it's just a curiosity, you might, but you can't hide _anything_ from me."

Miku gulped nervously.

"Details, Miku. _I need details."_

"I-I was just, since that— I—"

"—have a crush on Kagamine Len," Rin supplemented, causing an inhuman squeal to rip from Miku's lips. The poor girl was bright red and trembling.

"N- _no_! I mean, he's just, he's so impressive, a-and he's a pro actor, and I'm the newbie! It's only natural th-that I—"

" _I'm_ a pro actor," Rin countered. "So are Kaito, Meiko, Luka, Gumi, and Gack."

"I, eh, b-bu-buhhhh...!"

"By the way, they've been listening the whole time," Rin added. 

"WHAT?!"

At least pretending to be bashful at being caught redhanded, Kaito emerged from the Green Room's second door. Next was Meiko, who pulled herself into the room by the window. Gack came out from behind the coat rack. Luka exited the closet with a look of annoyance gracing her features. Gumi crawled out from under the sofa, giving Miku a heart attack twelve times over.

"Wh-wh-wh-wh-wh—"

"Sorry, Miku! It seemed super interesting, so I couldn't resist listening in!" Kaito, for a pro actor, sucked at acting like he actually regretted it.

"I can't believe you forgot to check in the closet," Luka huffed, very annoyed. "Did you actually want people to listen in? Or were your brain cells too occupied with thinking of your crush to actually accomplish things?"

"Wh— no, that's not—"

"Luka, please," Meiko said in her motherly tone. "Be a bit merciful on her."

"For my part, I wholeheartedly support you, Miku," Gack said with a smile. "In everything. Should you require a chaperone, I will always be available—"

"No! Nononononono! _No!_ I appreciate it and all, but it's the wrong century for that! And I would die! Of embarrassment!" Miku screamed, before noticing Gumi. Her once-scarlet skin turned pale in an instant at the sight. _"Why are you writing this down?!"_

"A heart-pounding romance on the set, doesn't that sound like the stuff of romance novels?" Gumi, ever the productive novelist, asked with a wink. 

Miku screamed.

Rin cackled at her suffering, just as Meiko tossed an arm over the pigtailed girl's shoulder. This caused the others to circle around Miku, creating a dome of romantic gossip.

"Come now, don't be so stressed! We're just talking!" Meiko declared.

"Everything, everything, we gotta know everything!" Rin urged her.

"I admit, I'm a bit curious..." Kaito confessed.

"Well?" Luka stared at Miku like the younger girl was trash. "Out with it."

"Yes," Gack agreed. "We'd love to hear it."

"Be sure to go into detail!" Gumi added.

"What are you all doing?" A voice by the doorway asked.

"Just teasing Miku an itty bitty bit, Len," Rin answered thoughtlessly, before her head shot up with wide eyes. "Len?!"

Miku's expression could only be described as a cross between _'Dear divine deity of mercy, let the earth swallow me up RIGHT NOW'_ and _'what did I do to deserve this.'_

With a completely blank expression, Len appraised all of them.

"Don't mess with her too much. We need our lead actress in good enough shape to practice."

"Yes sir," everyone but Miku said, lying through their teeth. 

Miku gulped, feeling like the play was the least of her concerns.

_'Please, let me survive until opening night at least!'_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> reading the bad end night novels is like reading a fic by someone whose account name is "iamtheangstgod" whose series are reknowned for their angstiness. your sister cried because of their oneshots, your brother weeps at their longfics.
> 
> the fic youre reading is a remaster of an old fic and youre excited. it was one of their earliest works so it didnt have a lot of the polish the newer ones had, the story was a bit confusing but the premise held promise, and youre glad the author is returning their attention to it.
> 
> it starts with an intro. youre confused, since the old one didnt have an intro, but you figure its fine. it was confusing when they jumped right into the action anyways, and having the time to build up an emotional connection to the characters makes the pain worse, right?
> 
> except then, as theyre going through this intro, they punch you in the face. hard.
> 
> they dont even stop there. they grab your face and toss it into the ground and you know what that ground is made of?
> 
> subtext.
> 
> its so much fucking subtext that you can almost erase the sub and say its outright text. what the hell. what is happening. why are these two characters exuding an aura of romantic tension when they barely interacted in the original?
> 
> "well," the author note says, as the author rips off their 'angst god' tshirt and replace it with a naval uniform, tipping their hat as they speak, "i've decided to focus a bit more on the relationships between characters."
> 
> "relationships? between characters?" you reply incredulously. "there are two characters whose relationship has been described in vivid detail and then there are the others who barely exist. what happened here?"
> 
> "what happened, my friend, is that i ship it."
> 
> and they do.
> 
> you keep reading the fic. it still has all the painful bits you remember. but now, for every gut punch there is, there is another, deeper gut punch, because now they are adding _ship angst_ to the pain.
> 
> its somehow everything you expected and all the things you didnt. it was still a ride that was terrible, but also good, yet mostly terrible, but it was also a ride with a very, very distinctive ship.
> 
> and you just ask yourself, "is this... is this something ive missed before?"
> 
> so you go back and check on their works.
> 
> and you realize, that while there are exceptions
> 
> they have still shipped this for a long time.
> 
> and somehow this makes everything worse and now theyre making you ship it too but its so painful
> 
> so naturally i had to write a fic about it


	2. Death by Adoption

"Does white or blue look better on me?" Rin asked, rather out of the blue. She flipped through a dress catalogue as she laid down on the couch.

"Hmmm, I think blue," Kaito said as he added more lines to the plan laid out on the coffee table.

"Of course you'd say blue," Meiko huffed, erasing one of his lines to draw a smoother one. "It's your favourite colour."

"Though, I can definitely see where he's coming from, with the blue and all," Gumi added, jotting down her thoughts. "Her eyes would really make the outfit pop."

"Yes, eyes are the window to the soul and whatnot," Luka huffed. "The more pressing question is, what kind of dress would you have to get to hide the fact that you're a flat-chested shortie with the face of a twelve year old?"

"Hey!"

"I believe a better way of wording that is, _'how can we find a dress that best brings out your charms?'_ " Gack offered in a placating tone, before glancing at the really red, super silent Miku frozen in her chair. "Though, of course, you mustn't outshine the bride."

"Of course not!" Rin exclaimed, tossing her catalogue of wedding dresses over her shoulder. Kaito flinched at the sudden movement, smudging part of his and Meiko's plans for the venue. Gumi noted this down, between dress costs and cake flavour ideas.

_"Please stop planning my death for me!"_ Miku screamed. "I'm seriously going to die if you keep it up!"

"Of what, blushing?"

"Yes!"

"Why is our lead actress screaming murder at nine am?"

"Oh, because we're planning the wedding—" Rin's eyes almost popped out of her head at the sight of her twin. "Len?! Again?!" 

"It's not my fault none of you ever think to _check_ _the goddamn door,"_ he replied flatly.

"W-w-w-waugh—!" Miku gurgled, hands flying up to cover her face. "We-wedding?! What weddin', we never, ever spoke of a weddin', ya hear!? Th, tha's absurd! They're a buncha rotten orchids, that's what—!"

"Miku's so embarrassed, she lapsed back into backwater village speak!" Gumi gasped in awe.

"It's rude to call her hometown a backwater village," Gack answered.

"No one's gettin' m-m-m-m-married! No one! Not me! Definitely not, ya hear me?!"

"I do."

"She's getting married," Rin stated, overriding Miku's anxious nonsense rambling. "She's getting married really, really hard."

"How do you even marry someone really hard?" Kaito wondered.

"By having a bunch of honeymoons?" Meiko offered.

"How scandalous," Luka said, her tone bored enough to be a flat piece of wood.

"I'm not! I- you, Ya didn't hear anything! Stop looking at me!"

"You really need to stop breaking her," Len noted, absentmindedly staring at her bright, bright red ears. "She might not be able to practice later."

"Is that really what you care about?!" Rin demanded. "That's your future wife—"

"—'s sister-in-law!" Kaito interjected. "We're planning her sister's wedding!"

"That's not even what sister-in-law means," Luka observed. "If she's his wife's sister-in-law, then we have an extra Rin."

"Eh?" Rin reacted with an innocent face.

"So we have an extra Rin!" Miku exclaimed happily, eager to get her comeuppance. "Should I dye my hair blonde or leave it as-is?"

"As-is," Meiko voted.

"I agree," Gumi and Gack said in unison.

"Blonde," Luka countered. "I won't be able to know if you're twins without the uncanny resemblance."

"Blonde hair and blue eyes is a classic look," Kaito added.

"No, no, no, you aren't replacing me! That's illegal!"

"So I'll leave my hair as-is! Alright!"

Len was relieved that Miku seemed less anxious, and thought that playing along was the best way to ensure that she would continue being relaxed and calm.

So, with his calm and stoic face, he said, "Looking forward to living together, little sister."

Miku took the time to process that. 

Being Len's twin sister meant living with him. Eating with him. Barging into his room whenever. Maybe even when he was changing, and then she could—!

" _Kyaaaaaaaaa_! Miku's dying of blood loss!"


	3. Death by False Reassurance

"I just wanted you to know, I only asked about Len's taste in girls because I thought he was a playboy who would hit on everyone if left unchecked!"

"Late!" Gumi called out. "That's so late! You could only come up with a plausible explanation two days after?!"

"Plausible my ass, unless we've a second Kaito under that blonde hair," Luka added, playing chess with Gack. The purple-haired man countered her move with his knight, causing her to swear under her breath.

"Yeah, I'd have a hard time believing Len would even _smile_ at a girl, let alone flirt with one," Meiko mused as she flipped through her newspaper. "He'll have a hard time being Kaito the Second with that kind of setback."

"What, is it National Be Mean to Kaito day or something?" Kaito wondered out loud, taking a sip of the tea Gumi made for everyone. "Mmm, this tea is delicious, just as much as the maker is beautiful."

Everyone stared at Kaito flatly for a second.

"So, anyways! Before Len and Rin get here, I need you to help me explain this!" Miku exclaimed, ignoring that.

"Denied."

"No."

"I apologize, but no."

"Sorry."

"Never."

"I HATE YOU ALL!" Miku screamed, just as the blonde twins entered.

"What happened this time?" Len wondered.

"It doesn't matter!" Rin declared. "You need to practice a kiss scene with Miku!"

_"What?!"_ The pigtailed girl reacted like someone had just slapped her in the face with a searing fish.

"There _is_ no kiss scene in the play," Len retorted.

"She's an aspiring actress, Len! She needs the experience!"

"It has nothing to do with the task at hand, though."

"Don't you want to help someone grow and flourish as an actor?!"

"I'll do that by practicing the scenes that actually show up in the play with her."

"Then just imagine that there's a scene where the Villager makes out with the Doll! She wants to!"

"What kind of person would want to—" Len cut himself, looking over at Miku.

Miku, much to the combined amusement and concern of the other five, was twitching and blushing like a monkey on caffeine.

"I-I-I, I don't... I don't want to m-m-make out with the D-d—"

"Miku, you're terrible at lying," Gack noted. 

An odd sound left Miku's throat.

"Don't worry! It's a cute trait!" Kaito attempted.

"Stop flirting with the girl who wants to fuck the Doll," Luka said flatly.

"She's kinda not interested," Meiko noted.

"I didn't know you actually could turn that colour," Gumi said, utterly impressed by the display.

"I'm so sorry," Miku intoned with a dreadful voice, bowing down on the floor. "Please forgive me for my sins."

"Don't worry, Miku. It's totally fine that you're into a Doll," Rin told her reassuringly, before elbowing her brother. "Right, Len?"

Miku glanced up with some vague glimmer of hope in her eyes.

Now, Len wasn't aware that everyone was making jokes about Miku wanting to date and kiss a doll as in the Doll _Boy_ from the play. Since he didn't know about the jokes about his part, well, he came to a conclusion...

"Don't worry," he said, lies in his eyes, "it's.... it's perfectly normal to... like dolls. Not usually in that way, but I won't judge..."

"Ah," Gumi said in a neutral-sounding voice, "Miku died again."


	4. Death by Alcohol

"No! No, no, no, no! No!"

Surprisingly enough, Miku wasn't the one spouting off rapidfire denials first thing after practice.

The one screaming and clutching Miku to his chest defensively was actually Kaito.

"Don't! No! Never! Not in this theater!"

"Kaito, please, do you seriously think that she could ask him out _without_ the power of alcohol?" Rin asked.

"I don't," Gumi chipped in.

"Nope," Luka said, flipping a page in her chess manual.

"I can't say that I can imagine it..." Gack muttered.

"Nah," Meiko piped up, draining her cup.

"I agree with them, but that doesn't mean I'll let you get her drunk!" Kaito exclaimed.

"Please stop talking about me like I'm not here," Miku requested in a dead sort of voice.

"Is that really the thing that you're most concerned anout here?" Len asked.

"I'm concerned about their attempts to set me up wi— why do you keep doing that!?" Miku suddenly screamed, realizing that Len was right next to her. She jumped out of Kaito's arms in a panic. "A-at least knock!"

"Miku's saying that you'll give her a heart attack if you don't," Meiko translated, taking a sip straight from the bottle. 

"By the way, do you like wine or beer better, Miku?" Rin asked.

"Wine," Miku answered without thinking. It took Kaito's parental screeches to jolt her back to reality. "Wait, no, don't make me another Miss Meiko!"

"What are you implying?!" Meiko demanded, angrily setting down her wine bottle.

"That you're a boozehound, I think," Gumi suggested helpfully.

"A passionate alcohol-lover," Gack corrected.

"Drunkard," Luka translated.

".......nooooooooooooo?" Miku attempted.

"So, anyways, Miku needs alcohol to hit on a guy," Rin decided. "Pass me the wine, please, Meiko!"

"This isn't over," Meiko promised, furious as she handed Rin the bottle.

"No! Not Miku's alcohol innocence! Don't rob her of that!" Kaito cried out.

"Stop being ridiculous," Luka huffed. "She's a legal adult. She can make her own decisions."

"I never agreed to this," Miku pointed out.

"Shut up, no one asked you."

"C'mon, just a few sips of liquid courage?" Rin asked, holding out the bottle towards Miku.

Miku felt vaguely threatened by the motion.

But before she could be pressured into drinking it, Len snatched the wine bottle out of his sister's hands and drank.

Everyone stared at him in shock for a second.

With a face made out of stone, Len set the bottle back on the table.

"So. The matter is closed, I supposed," Len decided, turning to walk away.

 _'So cool...!'_ Miku screamed internally, before realizing something important. _'T-they both... they both drank straight from the bottle—'_

"Seriously," Luka said, sighing as Miku died once again, "getting so worked up over indirect kisses... are you sure you're an adult?"


	5. Death by Food

"Kyaaaaaaaaaaaa!"

"....seriously, Miku?" Luka asked, standing over the girl who sprawled all over the stage.

"S-sorry! I'm so sorry, I—"

"Luka, stop giving her such a hard time," Len ordered, kneeling to help the girl up. "You okay?"

Meiko sighed. 

"I suppose we can practice the party scene later..."

"No, no, I'm okay, I can do it! I swear! Let me try the dance steps again!" Miku exclaimed. "I won't fall into anyone!"

"That's the spirit," Len told her, meaning it despite his flat tone. It wasn't his fault his voice always gave off the impression he was dead inside.

Miku let out a nervous chuckle, turning to face Len.

And then she noticed three important things.

One: Len was kneeling down to help her up.

Two: she had taken his hand out of unconscious habit.

Three: _god_ his eyes were beautiful up close.

"You've got to be kidding me," Luka huffed as Miku flinched away and began stammering and hiding her face behind her pigtails.

* * *

"Do I really scare people that much?" Len wondered as he went home with his sister.

Rin, being Rin, instantly picked up on the fact that this was about Miku. 

And well, she supported Miku. She also loved teasing Miku, but she wasn't mean enough to tell her crush about her crush without her permission.

But... the fact that Len even asked meant that it was a matter that concerned him. Knowing him, the concern was one third out of a desire to make sure the play succeeded, and two thirds actually questioning his relationship with the pigtailed girl. Along with some vague self-hatred for being so ominous and scary, probably.

Rin was torn between telling Len the truth and protecting Miku's secret, so she did what most people would have done.

"She's scared of you, but not because of your personality," Rin lied. "It's because you're a guy her age."

Len gave her a questioning stare.

"I know you were so focused on the play when we went to her village to do research for the play and all, but you should have at _least_ noticed that most of the people there were girls," Rin declared.

Hey, she only remembered meeting Miku, so all of the villagers she met there were girls. It was _technically_ true.

"So..."

"She's awkward around you because you're a guy her age!" Rin repeated. "Gack and Kaito are old enough for her to feel parent vibes, but she doesn't know how to interact with a _'boy!'_ "

(Gack and Kaito, in their own homes, felt the sudden strike at their ages.)

"If that's the case, then... how do I make her more comfortable around me? We can't act if she's so scared of me..." 

"Don't be so pouty, Len!"

"I'm not pouting."

"Your big sister will take care of everything!" Rin continued on like he hadn't said anything.

"...joy?"

* * *

"Riiiiiiiiiiiiiin! What am I supposed to doooooooooo!?" Miku wailed the next day in the green room, clinging to the blonde. "I-I, I tripped because I felt him touch me during the dance scene, and even though it was an accident, I just jumped and tripped and I can't keep being an idiot like this!"

The blonde patted her head.

"Don't worry, Miku! I'm sure you'll get it, alright?" _'Rin'_ promised.

Yeah. Rin's grand plan was to dress up in Len's clothes and chat Miku up.

Okay, she was mostly hoping that Miku would be an idiot and talk about her crush and force her brother to realize the fact.

But she was able to convince Len that she had nothing but the best of intentions.

Which she did, of course. She definitely wasn't watching with candy in lieu of popcorn. Don't be ridiculous.

"You think so?" Miku asked.

"Of course!" The blonde promised with a cheerful smile.

"Get a room," Luka huffed, moving a chess piece.

"Checkmate," Gack returned, causing the pink-haired woman to slam her hand down on the table and seethe.

"This _is_ a room, though," Gumi noted, reading a book on the couch.

"But, well, we all support Miku in doing her best," Meiko said, before sipping some of her coffee. "I'm sure Len would say the same, once he gets here."

"I do have to wonder, why does he keep arriving late?" Kaito mused. "Don't you two leave your home together, Rin?"

 _'Rin'_ chuckled nervously.

"Weeeeell... I might have asked him to go get snacks for me...."

"Every day?" Meiko wondered.

Underneath the new hairstyle and change of clothes and acting skills, Len began to sweat.

"Don't tell him I told you this, okay?" _'Rin'_ asked, blinking bright blue eyes innocently, "but, Len actually worries that sometimes—"

A donut was shoved into _'Rin's_ ' mouth, and a sigh of relief left _'Rin.'_

"Pack of donuts, just like you asked," _'Len'_ said in a flat tone, setting down a bag on the table.

"You got too much for one person! Are you trying to fatten me up?!"

"You asked for that much. If anything, blame your sweet tooth."

"Miku! Help me! Take some so that Len's evil plan wn't work!"

"E-Eh, no, no, no, I couldn't! I mean, _he_ bought them for _you_ , and—"

"And I'm giving some to you!" _'Rin'_ insisted.

"...are you even eating enough, Miku?" _'Len'_ asked.

"Eh," _'Rin'_ managed flatly.

The others were watching intently now, a bit of a smirk on their faces.

Averting _'his'_ eyes, ' _Len_ ' went on.

"You're a novice actress from a village, we're all already pros. We have more money to throw around compared to you. And with the costs of an inn in this busy distinct..."

 _'Rin'_ really wanted to interject, say that _'Len'_ didn't actually think that much about others or care that much, but _'Rin_ ' technically had no reason to...

"D-d-d-d-d-d-d-don't worry, Mi-Mister Len! I have enough to eat, R-Rin gives me some extra snacks every day! Ri-right, Rin?!"

"R-Right!"

"Is that so?"

Miku nodded so hard, Meiko swore her head would fall off.

And then _'Len'_ gave a small smile.

"I'm glad that the trip every day is worth it."

 _'Rin'_ froze.

The twins' eyes met, and Len cursed himself for trusting his sister for anything.

"Did I forget to tell you?" _'Rin'_ was forced to ask with a smile. "Len's the one who buys your snacks everyday."

 _'Len'_ pretended to be all bashful, fooling everyone. 

"I-it's only because we can't have our lead actress dying of hunger!"

"All those donuts will eventually kill her, though," Luka pointed out, mostly because, now that Miku had learned that Len was actually concerned about her health, she was dying from blushing and trying to hide the fact by hiding behind her pigtails again.

"But we're always dying, just slowly," Gumi pointed out.

"What the hell," Meiko said. "Why did that conversation suddenly go there."

"They've got a point, though," _'Len'_ admitted. "You can't always have snacks... maybe I can pay for your dinner tonight instead?"

"No way, no way, no way!" Gumi screamed.

"Oh my god," Kaito muttered.

"This is happening," Meiko confirmed, pinching herself.

"I should watch over them..." Gack mumbled to himself.

"Did you just ask her out?!" Len demanded, breaking character out of sheer shock.

Luka groaned and slapped her hand to her forehead.

"Miku just fainted. Fucking moron."


	6. Death by Thoughtlessness

"Remember to _breathe_ ," Meiko reminded the pigtailed girl with a patient smile.

"Don't worry! Just _relax!"_ Kaito advised her.

"He won't eat you," Gumi stated.

"He really better not," Gack added. "That's utterly improper for a first date."

A strange wheezing sound left Miku at that word.

"Miku," Rin called out. "You are perfectly charming and cute. You just have a tendency to think of the worst case scenario and panic and say really stupid things. Relax and calm down and you'll be fine."

Miku was steadily regaining colour in her face.

"I mean, it's not like you can get much worse than him thinking you want to fuck dolls," Luka mentioned.

Aaaaaaaaaaand there went Miku, sent spiralling into the depths of chaotic confusion and eternal embarrassment once again.

Thanks Luka.

* * *

Miku rushed to the entrance of the theater, finding Len already waiting while reading a newspaper. He was seated on top of the bench usually used just to sit while putting on or removing one's shoes in the small door area. It was right by the coat rack, closet, and windows.

"I-I'm, I'm here, s-sorry if I'm late, ah, I ran over as fast as I-I could—"

"Miku," Len interjected, standing up. "You're early."

"Is it too much, though?! Too little?! _Ahhhh_ , please don't think I'm weird!"

Len looked at her blankly.

"Bit hard to manage that now, isn't it?" Luka whispered to herself, hiding behind the curtains.

 _"Shhhh!"_ Meiko hissed from the other curtain.

Kaito sighed from inside the closet. Rin did the same from her spot in the coat rack.

Underneath the bench, Gumi facepalmed.

Gack likely would have done the same if he could.

"Why... why are you so anxious?" Len asked bluntly, causing his sister to grip at Kaito's coat in frustration.

"E-e-eh?!"

"I'm serious. Have I done something to you? Do I frighten you?"

"No, no, nononono! _No!_ Not at all!" Miku insisted insistently. "You don't scare me!"

"Then, why do you seem more nervous around me than anyone else?" Len inquired.

"Gh— er, umm..."

"Oh shit," Meiko muttered.

' _We should have gotten her drunk first,'_ Gumi thought.

"Th-the truth is...!"

Rin almost tore off Kaito's jacket sleeve in anticipation!

"IactuallyreallysuperadmireyoumisterLenbecauseIumyouer—"

"Please slow down."

Miku paused to breathe, then, still quite fast, she said, "Th-the first person I saw acting was you!"

Everyone was listening eagerly.

"I was a l-lucky audition from a backwater v-v-village, of course I was going to b-be excited when I got to see a practice session..." Miku mumbled. "Meiko showed me inside just as you were doing your lines... And, and you, you were so _good_ , I could instantly see that you w-were playing an inhuman role! It s-showed me what a pro actor is r-really capable of!"

With a bright passion to her eyes, she pressed her hand to her chest and exclaimed, "that's why— I can see everyone else as a mentor, but _you_ , you are the one person I must surpass and impress at all costs!"

"...........wow," Kaito was the first to react.

"I can't write things down under a bench..."

"And... three, two, one," Luka counted off, quietly snapping her fingers just as Miku squealed.

"D-d-d-d-d-d-d-d-d-d-d-d-did I _just say that out loud?!"_

"Miku—"

"Kyaaaaaa, this is _so_ embarassing!" Miku screamed, slapping her hands over her face. Her hands then when up to pull at her pigtails, pulling the long teal hair to cover her reddened cheeks.

"Miku," Len said flatly. "I'm happy to hear that you feel that way."

"Eh," Rin uttered, absolutely floored by recent events.

Without changing his expression at all, Len went on, saying, "While the way you've gone about it is certainly unorthodox, using a coworker as a standard to be passed is one way of motivating yourself to do better. Being helped and coddled won't always be effective, so it's good that you're finding other ways to go about it."

"Wh-what are you saying...?" Miku asked uncertainly.

"It's simple. I'll be glad to play the role of your rival."

 _"OH MY GOD,"_ Rin screamed, tearing Kaito's coat sleeve off and knocking the coat rack over.

"Wh-wh—?!" Miku was shocked, but also hit with a feeling that she should have expected this.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Luka roared, ripping the curtain in frustration. Her yanking accidentally broke the curtain rod and made it fall on Meiko.

Kaito's frustrated flailing was audible even from outside the closet.

Gumi exploded so hard, she threw the bench at the ceiling.

Which promptly hit Gack, who was eaglespread up there to eavesdrop unseen.

Len watched with a blank expression as the purple-haired man fell to the floor, a single thought on his mind as Miku died once again.

_'Maybe I should have changed it to a group outing.'_


	7. Death by Surprises

"So, how long are you gonna stay like that?" Luka asked bluntly. "You're gonna have to grow up and face reality sooner or later."

Miku huffed, withdrawing further into her sulking corner out of sheer spite.

"Well, traits like that are what make you so cute," Meiko said with a laugh.

"Perhaps we should just leave her to her own devices for a while?" Gack asked, at a loss.

"Yeah, teenage angst will go away with time," Kaito answered. "She'll stop being dramatic once she realizes it doesn't help her at all."

"I'll stop being dramatic when I die," Miku declared.

"That can be arranged!" Gumi exclaimed happily.

"Don't kill her, moron!"

"Huh? But we need her to stop being dramatic, and she said she needs to die to—"

"MURDER IS NOT A VIABLE SOLUTION TO TEENAGE ANGST!"

That was the precise moment Len opened the door.

He was very tempted to close it.

But he was there because he had a mission, and that mission had him walking past the confused and stunned cast members and kneeling by Miku, ignoring greetings, manners, and all such trivialities to go,

"Alright, what's going on with you?"

Miku pouted, shoving her face into her knees.

"I'm just being _dramatic._ Like I wasn't just declared a _rival_ by the guy I _look up to_ and _admire_ more than anything."

"Just who do you think you're fooling with that admiration crap," Luka wondered flatly.

"Sh!" Kaito hissed.

"Miku, I meant it when I said I wanted to help you grow," Len stated. "You have a lot of potential, you just need some help to make it shine. It's because I recognize your talent that I said that."

"Knock it off, Miss Rin," Miku grumbled. "I know you're dressing as your brother to make me feel better. There's no way he would say that stuff about me."

"Hey, everyone, I brought extra donuts for you guys! Be sure to thank me!" Rin exclaimed as she entered the room.

And then she was petrified by everyone's intense gazes.

"....eh? You... you're Rin?" Miku asked.

"I. Uh. Yeah...? Was there any doubt?" Rin replied, confused.

"Then.... then I... then you..." 

She looked from Rin to Len then Len to Rin, and then screamed.

"There's the Miku we know and are perpetually confused by," Len noted, looking at her with the slightest hint of a smile on his face.

"You're the only one confused here," Meiko said. "To everyone else, she's as open as a book."

"No, it's more like a brochure," Gumi said.


	8. Death by Practice

" _A party? Where no one knows another's name or face?_ " Miku read off the page, before hesitating and bringing the script closer to her face. "No, wait, I need to sound more... suspicious? Or maybe just confused..."

Miku stood in the empty green room, having stayed behind into the evening hours to help the propmakers with some props. The weather outside was frightfully cold, and, truth be told, her continued practice was half to catch up with the others in skill and half to put off her inevitable departure.

An hour, she told herself. An hour of reviewing her scenes, and she would leave.

 _"A party? Where no one knows another's name or face?"_ Miku asked once again, her eyes darting from side to side. She imagined seeing the faces of her fellow actors there, trying to investigate each one with her gaze to gauge their trustworthiness.

"Miku? Why are you still here?"

Miku jumped at the sound of another person's voice, twisting around to see Len standing in the doorway.

"M-Mister Len! I didn't notice you! Why are you here?!"

"Because I heard voices in the theater and thought that someone was trying to rob the place," Len answered. Miku pouted, and he quickly added, "Rin accidentally brought Mayu's screwdriver home, so I went to return it."

"Ahhh..." Miku sighed as she recalled how furious the setmaker had been when she discovered the younger twin's prank. Her tools had never been so sparkly before. 

Len stared at Miku, and she quickly began to fidget with her script. 

"I-I was here because I was helping Ia do stuff around the set," Miku admitted, "but, well, the weather's freezing, and it's just so warm here, so I decided to try and practice a bit longer!"

"It'll only get colder the longer you wait," Len pointed out.

"...yeah."

"Plus, if you go home alone at night, you might be in danger."

Miku pulled a face at that.

"I'll walk you back," Len said with his usual blank face. 

"Ah, ah, you don't have to! If I get going now, I'll, I'll get there before dark, and if I run, I won't be cold, so—!"

"I didn't say I'd walk you back _now_ ," Len stated, before gesturing at her papers. "You were in the middle of something, right?"

One hand reaching up and drawing strands of her hair to cover her face, Miku answered, "yeah. I... I was practicing a bit."

"Well, I could give you a hand."

Miku's eyes widened.

"You don't have to! I don't want to be a burden or anything!"

Len gave her an odd look.

"I don't understand. You'd rather be terrible than practice with others?"

Miku wavered, but shook her head.

"That's not it... um, I mean, I know I'm bad, especially compared to everyone else, b-but that's why I need to work harder! I don't want to drag you down or make you baby me or anything."

"You're not actually bad at acting," Len told her. "You're new to it, yes, but you're skilled at putting yourself into the situation and considering how your character would act."

Miku's face began to heat up, but then Len added, "but, you're nervous and stupid."

Miku deflated in an instant, her eyes immediately screaming, _'stupid?!'_

It was then that Len, despite being Len, realized that he worded that badly.

"Uh. What I mean is... you're not going to be acting alone. In order for this play to be a success, we need to all be able to act together. You won't get very far if you focus so much on polishing your skills that you forget how to act alongside others."

"Oh. That's what you meant."

"Yeah." Glancing off to the side awkwardly, Len said, "we all want to work with you and help you shine. That's why you can depend on us a bit more."

Miku smiled, before covering her face with the script.

"Th-thank you, Mister Len. That's... I'm really happy right now."

Len stared at her blankly.

"Why are you hiding your face?"

"Because, um, well. I don't... want you to see my face right now."

"Why?"

"Because I'm sure my expression is something embarrassing."

"Is it?"

"S-since, I... I might be able to cry? Or... a-actually crying...?"

"Are you okay?" Len asked, concern in his eyes.

"It's a good kind of cry!" Miku exclaimed quickly. "I was just, I was nervous about being able to do it and then you tell me that because you're really nice even to the new girl and I'm just getting embarrassed and feeling relieved and happy and I'm rambling again right—"

"Yeah, you are," Len answered. "But I'm used to you doing it."

"You... you what?"

"It's just something that you do when you're nervous," Len pointed out. 

An odd whimper left Miku's lips, and Len kind of sort of freaked out because he figured people didn't like having their nervous habits pointed out.

Of course, Len didn't actually know what to do with that emotion other than set it aside and try to do something else.

"So... is your script okay?"

Miku flinched, before pulling her script away from her face.

"Oh no! It's totally ruined! Oh no oh no oh no oh no oh no!"

Miku was panicking and bright red and teary-eyed and screaming.

Len didn't know when he started being able to grin fondly at that sight. 

* * *

"Hold on. You _whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!_ " Rin screamed the next morning. "The reason he was late was because he brought you home?! I thought Mayu murdered him!"

"He's not you, dumbass," Luka retorted bluntly.

"Tell us more!" Meiko demanded.

"More!" Gumi gripped her notepad tightly enough that the pages were crinkling around her hand.

"WE HAVE TO KNOW EVERYTHING!" Kaito exclaimed, grabbing Miku's shoulders and shaking her vigorously.

"Going— to— be— sick—!"

"If he touched you, I'll be sure to make good use of my knife skills," Gack said.

"Calm your ass down immediately," Luka ordered.

"And besides, we never touched each other. Miku stayed on the other side of the sidewalk the entire time."

Almost everyone's expressions turned weird at that.

"How shy can you _get?"_ Rin asked in an exasperated tone.

"I—"

"And I had my hopes up for you," Luka said with a sigh.

"No, wait—"

"Miku, you need to learn how to be brave and strong," Meiko told her in a maternal way. "That's why, when Len walks in here, I'm going to throw you at him so you can—"

"HE'S ALREADY HERE!" Miku screamed.

The others turned their heads just in time to see Len fleeing the room in order to avoid getting hit by flying Mikus.


	9. opening night

In one night, Hatsune Miku was dead.

In a cruel twist of fate, one of the best days of her life ended with her death.

It was opening night of the miracle play, the play that could singlehandedly save their acting troupe from financial failure. Everything was riding on this one play and its perfect Cinderella story.

A lost script, the last one their playwright wrote before his death, suddenly found through sheer coincidence? And the Villager, the play's leading role, was played by a complete no one, a girl who had appeared from the same backwater village as the legendary playwright himself?

Of course it would create a stir. The seats were packed.

And yet, Miku had managed to pull off her lines, creating a beautiful world for the audience to believe in.

_'Ah... if only this moment would last forever!'_

And then she broke the clock.

The old grandfather clock was a prop they had gathered from an antique store. It was perfectly rustic, but, for whatever reason, had hands sharp enough to be used as knives.

The clock hands had managed to fall off. Miku panicked, when...

_“AhhHH... YOU broke the CLOCK... Oh NO, OH no! Time has COME to a STOP! You said IT! If ONLY this MOMENT could last FOREVER! The clock MUST have HEARD your wish! YahaHAHA...!”_

Len instantly covered for her, allowing the others to add in their own adlibbing.

It saved the night.

Afterwards, a hearty conversation had started up. The others asked if she was fine, celebrated the recovery, and chatted amongst themselves. Miku smiled and played along.

But, Miku thought to herself, to improvise was spit on the work of the legendary playwright. It was saying that his work was insufficient, that a mere actor could come up with better on the spot. To do such a thing was to stain the world that he had brought to life.

Blaming herself for it, she gathered up the clock hands after the play and went to the propmaker.

But, that was when she encountered Len once again.

It was awkward and somewhat strained, but they spoke of many things. They shared their favourite play, Len assured her once again that she had potential as an actress, even giving her some advice.

Miku had a passion of an aspiring actress, but she still had the heart of a maiden in love. So, even though she was grateful for the advice and encouragement, she was happier about—

_'That "Mister Len" thing is weirding me out. I'm the younger one. You don't have to call me Mister.'_

_'I understand... E-Er, I mean, got it. I’ll cuh, c-call you... Len. I mean, no! Can I... really call you...?'_

_'...It’s fine, Miku.'  
_

And then, before she could recover from the sudden blow of being asked to call her crush by his first name, he gave her a bouquet of blue roses, given to him by a fan.

Oh, but he didn't _say_ he was giving it to her, he just had to act cool and say they suited her better than him but that didn't change the fact that he _gave her roses!_ Even if they were from someone else, even if it might have been him getting rid of an unwanted gift, it was still an incredible moment!

She went on, chatting with her friends, being reminded that everyone had high hopes for the play and that she, despite her fears, did not screw up irreparably.

And then, while being called to an afterparty, while standing on the stage and reliving her first round of applause—

-she found a letter addressed to her.

* * *

It happened in an instant, was what they thought.

One moment, Meiko, Luka, and Kaito were yelling at Miku, screaming that she could not reveal the contents of the letter.

The next, she was running.

Everyone dispersed to search for her.

Then, they trapped her on the stairs, when Miku pulled out the broken clock hands from her pockets.

Kaito tried to restrain her, but she was terrified. She was scared they would resort to harm or worse to keep the secret hidden.

With their struggling, it would take a miracle for neither of them to fall down the stairs.

Miracles didn't exist for them, was what they learned,

Miku fell.

And when she did, the blade in her hands **s t a b b e d** herinthe _heart **.**_

She died, having just started on living out her dream.

She died, having had a marvellous experience with her first love.

She died, having so much left unfinished.

But then, they were given another chance.

Inside the world of the play, where a single moment, a single night would be repeated _f o r e v e r._

The letter she held stated thus:

  * Inside the world of the play, death held no sway.


  * As long as they remained in that world, the night before her death would repeat endlessly.


  * In the coffins were their original bodies, including hers.


  * Should she ever learn of the truth, the world would be destroyed,



_and they would return to the world where she was dead_

They resolved to stay in the world of the play

in order to find a way to save her

from her end.

* * *

_Night 1/∞..._


	10. Death by...

"If time repeats endlessly in this world, what would cause the time loop?" The Master wondered.

"It could be something that happens when enough time passes," the Daughter suggested.

"But, if Miku's death was what started all this..." the Maid said in a whisper.

"Then she might die, over and over again," the Doll Boy finished.

"Isn't that it? If she's going to die, then we'll just save her!" the Mistresss declared.

"Yeah! As many times as it takes, we will save Miku!" the Doll Girl agreed.

"Saving her while acting as our roles in the play, feigning unawareness of time repeating... is this truly possible?" the Butler wondered.

"As long as we keep that page hidden with the coffins... as long as we can keep her away from the coffins..." the Doll Boy murmured.

* * *

_Night 1/∞..._

* * *

Miku stepped into the waiting room, having her tea poured for her as the others explained their falsified situation.

The script page was missing, they said. Stolen or destroyed or hidden, and now, the play could not move forward! She had to search for the page with the others, understood?

"If we find that page... then, we might be able to return to reality..." Miku muttered, so lost in thought that she dropped the tea cup, causing it to shatter into pieces.

The Maid went to clean it up, and Miku apologized.

She promised to find the page, and went off to search with the Master.

After searching the storage room, they went through the corridor, passing by a suit of armour. 

With a scream of warning, Miku shoved the Master out of the way of the falling metal, crushed and stabbed underneath the armour.

* * *

_Night 2/∞..._

* * *

Miku stepped into the waiting room, having her tea poured for her as the others explained their falsified situation.

The script page was missing, they said. Stolen or destroyed or hidden, and now, the play could not move forward! She had to search for the page with the others, understood?

"If we find that page... then, we might be able to return to reality..." Miku muttered, so lost in thought that she dropped the tea cup, causing it to shatter into pieces.

The Maid went to clean it up, and Miku apologized.

She promised to find the page, and went off to search with the Daughter.

The Daughter pretended to harshly criticize Miku, but in reality, they were warnings to be careful as they ascended to the upper floors where they would search.

Miku realized that the Daughter was harsh, but kind under the surface, just like the Luka she knew.

She was so distracted by the reminder of reality that she misstepped on the stairs, the Daughter's scream ringing in her ears as she fell backwards.

* * *

_Night 3/∞..._

* * *

Miku stepped into the waiting room, having her tea poured for her as the others explained their falsified situation.

The script page was missing. Stolen or destroyed or hidden, and now, the play couldn't move forward. She had to search for the page with the others.

"If we find that page... then, we might be able to return to reality..." Miku muttered, so lost in thought that she dropped the tea cup, causing it to shatter into pieces.

The Maid went to clean it up, and Miku apologized.

She promised to find the page, and went off to search with the Maid and Mistress.

They searched the ground floor, before stopping for a tea break. The Maid prepared tea once again, and the Mistress drank it heartily.

Miku, encouraged by the Mistress' enthusiasm, took a cup herself.

But, for some reason, the tea that the Mistress could drink without trouble caused Miku to collapse. Her consciousness faded as the other two screamed...

* * *

_Night 4/∞..._

* * *

Miku stepped into the waiting room, having her tea poured for her as the others explained their falsified situation.

The script page was missing. Stolen or destroyed or hidden, and now, the play couldn't move forward. She had to search for the page with the others.

"If we find that page... then, we might be able to return to reality..." Miku muttered, so lost in thought that she dropped the tea cup, causing it to shatter into pieces.

The Maid went to clean it up, and Miku apologized.

She promised to find the page, and went off to search with the Butler.

He brought her to the wine cellar, where she found a prop bottle with liquid that moved and a prop bottle with liquid that didn't. The Butler kindly explained that some props were meant to be interacted with by the cast during the play, and thus, moved, while others were simply decoration.

Miku nodded, thinking that it made sense for a world in a play, thinking to store it away to share with the others later.

Thinking that, she rummaged around in her pocket, finding a letter.

The Butler panicked, trying to rip the letter from her hands before she read it. Startled by the sudden violent movement, Miku tried to fight back, until she collided with a massive wine rack. 

It was only after she was crushed by wood and broken glass that he learned that the letter was a blank page.

* * *

_Night 5/∞..._

* * *

Miku stepped into the waiting room, having her tea poured for her as the others explained their falsified situation.

"If we find that page... then, we might be able to return to reality..." Miku muttered, so lost in thought that—

"Huh? HUH? you CAUGHT the TEAcup?" the Doll Boy asked, hiding his shock with a shark-like smile.

"Ah...? I did? I didn't know I was this, um, dextrous?" Miku answered.

The Doll Girl clapped in amazement, as Miku added, "no, I just... got this _vision_ , like I could see the teacup breaking before it happened, and before I knew it, my body moved to stop it."

The room grew cold and silent.

Miku became anxious in the silence, quickly saying, "a-ah, sorry for saying something so weird! I don't know what I was saying!"

"aMAZing! this VILLaGER can SEE the fuTURE!" 

"AhaHAhaHAha! INcredIble! MISS villAger IS so TAlentED!"

Sweeping away their sense of unease, the Doll Twins took Miku around to search the mansion.

Away from the suit of armour, away from the kitchen's poisoned teas, away from the stairs, away from the wine rack, they took her to the main hall, planning to waste the night by distracting her with antics.

"why STRESS? we HAVE all the TIME in the WORLD!" the Doll Girl declared, laughing as she pointed at the clock.

Miku snickered a bit.

"I didn't even think that time was frozen. If it's like that, then we really can take our time, huh?"

"THAT'S corRECT!" the Doll Boy said while clapping. "like THIS, one NIGHT will LAST an EterNIty!"

The words struck a chord in Miku, as she remembered.

"Th- the clock! I broke the clock during the play...! And Len, the others, they covered for me, saying it was because the clock heard my wish for the _'moment to last forever!'"_

"huh?"

"HUH?"

Miku panicked, rushing over to the clock to examine its face.

But, her gestures were too violent, and she wound up knocking it over...

...and opening the door to a secret room.

"Jesus..." Len cursed under his breath.


End file.
